Trend or anomaly?

Does the record £1.85m paid for a 1995 Porsche 911 GT2 represent a market shift or anomaly?The result at RM Sotheby’s London auction certainly sent market commentators into overdrive, and I’m sure there will be a rush of similar vintage 911s hitting the market with amusingly optimistic asking prices over the coming weeks, but at Classic Cars magazine we don’t believe that one result makes a trend.The ingredients for an exceptional result were all there on the night – rare, low-mileage, single-owner examples of cars of the moment; high-profile auction and, most crucially, two bidders each with huge reserves of cash and a determination to outdo the other.It’s a set of circumstances unlikely to be repeated any time soon, so until we see more sales that support these sorts of figures, Classic Cars will be keeping its price guide figures where they are. For more analysis of this and other market signals, see the latest issue of Classic Cars.

Price guide movers revealed

The Price Guide Quarterly update in the latest issue of Classic Cars magazine reveals the latest climbers and fallers.Heading up the climbers chart are the Rover P6 3500 (up 82%), Porsche 944 Turbo Cabriolet (up 60%) and Dellow MkI-IV (also up 6-%), while the biggest fallers are the Mercedes 540K Cabriolet A/B/C (down 20%), Chevrolet Corvette C1 (down 17%) and Ford Consul Classic (also down 17%).Both lists include cars across the full spectrum of the traditional classic eras from the Thirties to the mid Seventies, but there are no modern classics in the list of fallers, reflecting the growth in interest from the newly affluent generation of buyers who grew up aspiring to those cars.

Turbo Saab time

The original Saab 99 Turbo still looks good value compared to many of its period rivals, with good examples still popping up for less than £10k.It may lack the wilder image of some of its turbocharged contemporaries, but this was a landmark car in the story of turbocharging and has always enjoyed a cult following. Owning one says ‘I could have bought a six-cylinder BMW or turbocharged Ford, but I don’t follow fashion.’Crucial to the appeal are those cool Inca alloys, and original fabric interiors set the package off nicely, so think twice about paying much for modified examples.

Fiat X1/9 is a sleeper

Fiat’s crisp, wedgy X1/9 showstopper is still being overlooked by buyers looking for the next big thing, but what else delivers such futuristic Bertone styling for well less than £5k?Choose in one of the more eye-catching Seventies colours and you’ll be sure to stand out from the crowds for all the right reasons during the next events season as you feel like an actor from an out-take of Blake’s 7. Shiny space jumpsuit optional.

BMC bargain

The BMC 1100/1300 range is your chance to own a sharp slice of Pininfarina styling riding on an even sharper chassis for a fraction of the cost of an early Mini.Usable examples of the Austin and Morris versions start at £1000 while even the up-spec MG, Riley and 1300GT alternatives are only three times that in equivalent condition while the mini-limo Vanden Plas and Wolseley variants fall in between. Of course perfection costs, so you’d have to budget more like £8k for a well restored MG, Riley or 1300GT, and proportionately less for the others.If you’re tempted, have a look at the detailed buying guide in the latest issue of Classic Cars magazine for all of the essential checks and model choice guidance you could wish for, plus specialist expert views and real owner experiences to make the process as easy as possible.

We want this

With just 46,000 miles and four previous owners this Jaguar E-type V12 caught our eye. It’s an ideal blend of originality and careful maintenance that can often be more satisfying to own than a fully restored car where everything has been apart and renewed. And its Primrose Yellow colour suits the more extrovert styling of the Series 3 E-type with its bold eggcrate radiator grille, flared wheelarches and wide wheels. In the latest issue of Classic Cars we take it for a road test to find out just what you get for the £125k asking price.